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December 27, 2011

The Asian Paints advertisement with the catchy tagline
“Merawala red!” or “Merawala green!” popped in my head when I was pondering over
the reality of colour. Colour is merely a ‘sensation’
felt by the brain when the eye transfers light bouncing off an object. If that
defines colour, then how can we standardize the sensation to each and every
brain? Is it right to generalize colours (or sensations) felt or perceived by
the brain? Merawala “Red” could be very different from anybody else’s Red. But,
since I was taught to identify the sensation as red, my sensation has been
termed the same as yours. If this was to be true, could it be possible that all
of us have the same favourite colour? But, this is difficult to believe. What if
my brain is recording red as green but I keep calling it red? Lots of questions
there. Now, let’s get down to some problem solving.

The Reality of my world could be very different from anyone
else’s. Some realize the difference and some don’t. The mind works way beyond
what it sees. Sight is just one of the sensations. Humans have been unable to
come up with a language that can help convey these perceptions to each and
every living being homogeneously. Imagine a world where each and every
individual feels the same way and reacts the same way for every single event or
action that takes place. Probably losing way in the complexities of the human
brain can be totally cancelled out if a common language of expression can be
formed for the whole of mankind. At present, we are not communicating. We are
perceiving. If the expression is not perceived in the same way as the expresser
of emotions, the message has clearly not been conveyed. So the root cause of
all the mismatch in communicating is the difference in perception.

One common language. One common expression that evokes the
same desires, feelings and reactions. If discovered, we probably have an answer
to all questions in life.

December 17, 2011

It’s a whirlwind of thoughts that lands me in a granny knot. Every rampant
idea being born out of the previous one sends my brain into an uncontrollable
loop. All started by a simple effort towards letting go of the past conditioning of
my mind. How does one ‘Let Go’? But before that, what does ‘Letting Go’ mean?
Can I really erase my memory? Only a human brain is capable of relating time to
a third party unlike animals who can only relate time to themselves. Hence, the
curse or boon of the human brain to wonder, speculate and apply knowledge to
goals way into the future. A future that may or may not be. One can always
predict the future that will or will not change. Another super trait that the
human brain possesses. As I write this piece that may or may not be read, my
future is changing or shaping into something that I am truly aware of yet
oblivious to.

Does my past have anything to do with my future? This piece
that I am writing may have an iota of contribution to how I will think after I
am finished writing it. I may or may not hit any solid conclusion or finding.
But it is also conditioning my brain to think in a particular way. I may not be
able to think outside a certain idea that I will finish forming after writing
this article. A box of thoughts shaped out of some knowledge that I may have
gained in my past is restricting the way I am thinking. I can question it. Put
it to test. I can doubt the very existence of this box. A box that may not
exist but manages to influence the way I think. The whys and hows will never
end because that’s how my brain functions. That’s how 'ANY' human brain functions. A fact which is some information that I may have learnt in the past. The habit of questioning.
Many say questioning is good. But what if it's a form of conditioning that
my brain has undergone? What if there are no answers? It’s a scary thought. No
answers. Makes every effort look futile. Probably knowledge will never lead you
to an answer. Probably it’s just diverting you from the fact that there is no
answer. Could that be the ultimate truth? I guess I’ll just have to wait till
the book ends. Wait and watch. Wait and observe. Just wait.